California Southern University Terms and Conditions

Effective: April 6, 2020

PLEASE READ THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS CAREFULLY. THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS (“AGREEMENT”) CONSTITUTE A LEGAL AGREEMENT BETWEEN YOU AND CALIFORNIA SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY.

SECTION 12 OF THIS AGREEMENT CONTAINS PROVISIONS THAT GOVERN HOW CLAIMS THAT YOU AND WE HAVE AGAINST EACH OTHER ARE RESOLVED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY CLAIMS THAT AROSE OR WERE ASSERTED BEFORE THE EFFECTIVE DATE OF THIS AGREEMENT. IN PARTICULAR, SECTION 12 SETS FORTH OUR ARBITRATION AGREEMENT WHICH WILL, WITH LIMITED EXCEPTIONS, REQUIRE DISPUTES BETWEEN US TO BE SUBMITTED TO BINDING AND FINAL ARBITRATION. UNLESS YOU OPT OUT OF THE ARBITRATION AGREEMENT: (1) YOU WILL ONLY BE PERMITTED TO PURSUE CLAIMS AND SEEK RELIEF AGAINST US ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS, NOT AS A PLAINTIFF OR CLASS MEMBER IN ANY CLASS OR REPRESENTATIVE ACTION OR PROCEEDING; AND (2) YOU ARE WAIVING YOUR RIGHT TO SEEK RELIEF IN A COURT OF LAW AND TO HAVE A JURY TRIAL ON YOUR CLAIMS. PLEASE SEE SECTION 12 FOR MORE INFORMATION REGARDING THIS ARBITRATION AGREEMENT, THE POSSIBLE EFFECTS OF THIS ARBITRATION AGREEMENT, AND HOW TO OPT OUT OF THE ARBITRATION AGREEMENT.

1. Purpose

California Southern University (“we,” “us,” or “our”) is an accredited, private university specializing in online and distance learning academic programs. By using the California Southern University website and any of the information and services offered through the application (“Services”), you agree to be bound by this Agreement. The success of the Services, however, depends on the adherence to the terms of this Agreement by you and other Users (collectively “you,” “your,” or “Users”). While we will do our best to enforce the terms of this Agreement, we cannot warrant or represent that other Users will in fact adhere to this Agreement and cannot act as insurers or accept any liability for their failure to do so.

2. Eligibility

By accessing or using the Services in any way, clicking on a button or taking similar action to signify your affirmative acceptance of this Agreement, you hereby represent that:

1. You have read, understand, and agree to be bound by this Agreement and any future amendments and additions to this Agreement as published from time to time at this link or through the Services;
2. You are 16 or older;
3. You have the authority to enter into the Agreement personally. Except as otherwise provided herein, if you do not agree to be bound by the Agreement, you may not access or use the Services; and,

You will comply with all applicable laws, including those of the country, state and city in which you are present while using the Services.

3. Access

1. Access. By entering into this Agreement, you will be granted a revocable license to access the Services without charge. Your access privileges, however, are conditioned on your adherence to the terms of this Agreement. We reserve the right to temporarily deny you access to the Services or permanently terminate your access privileges at any time if, in our sole discretion, you have failed to abide by the terms of this Agreement or appear to us likely to do so. By agreeing to grant you access, we do not obligate ourselves to do so or to maintain the Services, or to maintain it in its present form, and we expressly reserve the right to modify, suspend, or terminate your access privileges.
2. Prohibited Uses. You understand, acknowledge and agree that any access or use of the Services shall be for your personal, non-commercial use only, and that you will not commercially exploit any portion of the Services.
3. Privileges Nontransferable. Your access privileges may not be transferred by you to any third parties.
4. Passwords and Security. You agree not to disclose to anyone your confidential password and to notify us immediately if there has been a breach of your security that affects our Services.

4.  Acceptable Use Policy

By using the Services, you agree that:

1. You will only use the Services for lawful purposes, and not for deceptive or fraudulent purposes; you will not send or store any unlawful material.
2. You will not use the Services to cause nuisance, annoyance or inconvenience.
3. You will not use the Services, or any content accessible through the Services, for any commercial purpose, including but not limited to contacting, advertising to, soliciting or selling to, any Users.
4. You will not violate the publicity or privacy rights of another individual.
5. You will not copy or distribute any content displayed through the Services.
6. You will not create or compile, directly or indirectly, any collection, compilation, or other directory from any content displayed through the Services except for your personal, noncommercial use.
7. The information you provide to us or otherwise communicate with us is accurate.
8. You will not use the Services in any way that could damage, disable, overburden or impair any of our servers, or the networks connected to any of our servers.
9. You will not attempt to gain unauthorized access to any part of the Services and/or to any service, account, resource, computer system and/or network connected to any of our servers.
10. You will not deep-link to the Services or access the Services manually or with any robot, spider, web crawler, extraction software, automated process and/or device to scrape, copy or monitor any portion of the Services or any content on the Services.
11. You will report any errors, bugs, unauthorized access methodologies or any breach of our intellectual property rights that you uncover in your use of the Services.
12. You will not impersonate another person, act as another entity without authorization, or create multiple accounts.
13. Your User Content does not contain material that solicits personal information from anyone under 18 or exploits people under the age of 18 in a sexual or violent manner, and does not violate any federal or state law concerning child pornography or otherwise intended to protect the health or wellbeing of minors;
14. Your User Content does not violate any state or federal law designed to regulate electronic advertising;
15. Your User Content does not contain pictures, data, audio or visual files, or any other content that is excessive in size, as determined by us in our sole discretion.

5. Information on our Services

While we will always use our best efforts to ensure the accuracy and completeness of information provided on our Services, we cannot guarantee the accuracy, adequacy, quality, or suitability of any data on our Services and expressly disclaim liability for errors and omissions in the contents of our Services. Any use or reliance on any content or materials posted via the Services or obtained by you through the Services is at your own risk. Any link to a website or phone number owned by a third party does not constitute an endorsement, approval, association, sponsorship, or affiliation with the linked site or phone number.

6. Intellectual Property Ownership

We (and our licensors, where applicable) shall own all right, title and interest, including all related intellectual property rights, in and to the Services. This Agreement is not a sale and does not convey to you any rights of ownership in or related to the Services, or any intellectual property rights owned by us. Our name, logo, and the product names associated with the Services are our trademarks or belong to third parties, and no right or license is granted to use them. You agree that you will not remove, alter or obscure any copyright, trademark, service mark or other proprietary rights notices incorporated in or accompanying the Services.

 7.  Privacy

We have adopted a Privacy Policy outlining our personal data collection and use practices. Please refer to it for details about how we collect and use your personal information. By agreeing to the terms of this Agreement, you are automatically agreeing to our Privacy Policy, which is incorporated herein by reference.

8. Third-Party Interactions

The Services may contain links to or display content originating from third-party websites and advertisements (collectively, “Third-Party Websites & Advertisements”). Such Third-Party Websites & Advertisements are not under our control. We are not responsible for any Third-Party Websites or any Third-Party Advertisements. We do not review, approve, monitor, endorse, warrant, or make any representations with respect to such Third-Party Websites & Advertisements, or their products or services. When you click on a link to a Third-Party Website or Advertisement, we will not warn you that you have left our Services and will not warn you that you are subject to the terms and conditions (including privacy policies) of another website or destination. You use all links in Third-Party Websites & Advertisements at your own risk. You should review applicable terms and policies, including privacy and data gathering practices of any Third-Party Websites, and make whatever investigation you feel necessary or appropriate before proceeding with any transaction with any third party.

9. Indemnification

You agree to indemnify and hold harmless California Southern University and its officers, directors, employees, agents and affiliates (each, an “Indemnified Party”), from and against any losses, claims, actions, costs, damages, penalties, fines and expenses, including without limitation attorneys’ fees and expenses, that may be incurred by an Indemnified Party arising out of, relating to or resulting from (a) your User Content; (b) your misuse of the Services; (c) your violation of this Agreement; or (d) your violation of any applicable laws, rules or regulations through or related to the use of the Services. In the event of any claim, allegation, suit or proceeding alleging any matter potentially covered by the agreements in this section, you agree to pay for the defense of the Indemnified Party, including reasonable costs and attorneys’ fees incurred by the Indemnified Party. We reserve the right, at our own cost, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you, in which event you will fully cooperate with us in asserting any available defenses. This provision does not require you to indemnify any Indemnified Party for any unconscionable commercial practice by such party, or for such party’s negligence, fraud, deception, false promise, misrepresentation or concealment, suppression or omission of any material fact in connection with the Services. You agree that the provisions in this section will survive any termination of your account, this Agreement, or your access to the Services.

10.  Disclaimer of Warranties

YOU EXPRESSLY UNDERSTAND AND AGREE THAT TO THE FULLEST EXTENT OF LAW, YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES IS ENTIRELY AT YOUR OWN RISK. CHANGES ARE PERIODICALLY MADE TO THE SERVICES AND MAY BE MADE AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE TO YOU. THE SERVICES ARE PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” BASIS WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND NON-INFRINGEMENT. WE MAKE NO WARRANTIES OR REPRESENTATIONS ABOUT THE ACCURACY, RELIABILITY, COMPLETENESS OR TIMELINESS OF THE CONTENT MADE AVAILABLE THROUGH THE SERVICES, OR THE TEXT, GRAPHICS OR LINKS.

WE DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SERVICES WILL OPERATE ERROR-FREE OR THAT THE SERVICES ARE FREE OF COMPUTER VIRUSES AND OTHER HARMFUL MALWARE. IF YOUR USE OF THE SERVICES RESULTS IN THE NEED FOR SERVICING OR REPLACING EQUIPMENT OR DATA, WE SHALL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THOSE ECONOMIC COSTS.

11.  Limitation of Liability

UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCES AND UNDER NO LEGAL THEORY (WHETHER IN CONTRACT, TORT, OR OTHERWISE) SHALL CALIFORNIA SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY BE LIABLE TO YOU OR ANY THIRD PARTY FOR (A) ANY INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, EXEMPLARY, CONSEQUENTIAL OR PUNITIVE DAMAGES, INCLUDING LOST PROFITS, LOST SALES OR BUSINESS, LOST DATA OR DATA BREACH, OR (B) FOR ANY DIRECT DAMAGES, COSTS, LOSSES OR LIABILITIES (INCLUDING ATTORNEYS’ FEES) IN EXCESS OF THE FEES ACTUALLY PAID BY YOU IN THE TWO (2) MONTHS PRECEDING THE EVENT GIVING RISE TO YOUR CLAIM OR, IF NO FEES APPLY, ONE HUNDRED ($100) U.S. DOLLARS.  THE PROVISIONS OF THIS SECTION ALLOCATE THE RISKS UNDER THIS AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE PARTIES, AND THE PARTIES HAVE RELIED ON THESE LIMITATIONS IN DETERMINING WHETHER TO ENTER INTO THIS AGREEMENT. Some states do not allow the exclusion of implied warranties or limitation of liability for incidental or consequential damages, which means that some of the above limitations may not apply to you. IN THESE STATES, OUR LIABILITY WILL BE LIMITED TO THE GREATEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW.

WE MAKE NO REPRESENTATIONS OR WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICES, OR ANY OTHER ITEMS OR SERVICES PROVIDED BY US, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY ARISING BY USAGE OF TRADE, COURSE OF DEALING OR COURSE OF PERFORMANCE, ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE AND ANY IMPLIED WARRANTY OF NON-INFRINGEMENT. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE SERVICES (INCLUDING ANY SERVERS OR OTHER HARDWARE, SOFTWARE AND ANY OTHER ITEMS USED OR PROVIDED BY US IN CONNECTION WITH THE SERVICES) ARE PROVIDED “AS IS” AND THAT WE MAKE NO WARRANTY THAT THE SERVICES WILL BE FREE FROM BUGS, FAULTS, DEFECTS OR ERRORS OR THAT ACCESS TO THE SERVICES WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED.

12.  Dispute Resolution

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING SECTION CAREFULLY. IT REQUIRES YOU TO ARBITRATE DISPUTES WITH US AND LIMITS THE MANNER IN WHICH YOU CAN SEEK RELIEF. THIS SECTION 12 OF THIS AGREEMENT SHALL BE REFERRED TO AS THE “ARBITRATION AGREEMENT.”

1. Scope of Arbitration Agreement. You agree that any dispute or claim relating in any way to your access or use of the Services or as a consumer of our services, to any advertising or marketing communications regarding us or our Services, to any products or services sold or distributed through the Services that you received as a consumer, or to any aspect of your relationship or transactions with us as a consumer of our services will be resolved by binding arbitration, rather than in court, except that (1) you may assert claims in small claims court if your claims qualify, so long as the matter remains in such court and advances only on an individual (non-class, non-representative) basis; and (2) you or California Southern University may seek equitable relief in court for infringement or other misuse of intellectual property rights (such as trademarks, trade dress, domain names, trade secrets, copyrights, and patents). This Arbitration Agreement shall apply, without limitation, to all claims that arose or were asserted before the Effective Date of this Agreement.

IF YOU AGREE TO ARBITRATION WITH CALIFORNIA SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY, YOU ARE AGREEING IN ADVANCE THAT YOU WILL NOT PARTICIPATE IN OR SEEK TO RECOVER MONETARY OR OTHER RELIEF IN ANY SUCH CLASS, COLLECTIVE, AND/OR REPRESENTATIVE LAWSUIT. INSTEAD, BY AGREEING TO ARBITRATION, YOU MAY BRING YOUR CLAIMS AGAINST US IN AN INDIVIDUAL ARBITRATION PROCEEDING. IF SUCCESSFUL ON SUCH CLAIMS, YOU COULD BE AWARDED MONEY OR OTHER RELIEF BY AN ARBITRATOR.

Arbitration Rules and Forum. This Arbitration Agreement is governed by the Federal Arbitration Act in all respects. To begin an arbitration proceeding, you must send a letter requesting arbitration and describing your claim to our registered agent, [600 Anton Blvd., Suite 1100, Costa Mesa, California 92626]. The arbitration will be conducted by JAMS under its rules and pursuant to the terms of this Agreement. Disputes involving claims and counterclaims under $250,000, not inclusive of attorneys’ fees and interest, shall be subject to JAMS’s most current version of the Streamlined Arbitration Rules and procedures available at http://www.jamsadr.com/rules-streamlined-arbitration/; all other claims shall be subject to JAMS’s most current version of the Comprehensive Arbitration Rules and Procedures, available at http://www.jamsadr.com/rules-comprehensive-arbitration/. JAMS’s rules are also available at jamsadr.com (under the Rules/Clauses tab) or by calling JAMS at 800-352-5267. Payment of all filing, administration, and arbitration fees will be governed by JAMS’s rules. If the arbitrator finds that you cannot afford to pay JAMS’s filing, administrative, hearing and/or other fees and cannot obtain a waiver of fees from JAMS, we will pay them for you. In addition, we will reimburse all such JAMS’s filing, administrative, hearing and/or other fees for claims with an amount in controversy totaling less than $10,000. If JAMS is not available to arbitrate, the parties will select an alternative arbitral forum. You may choose to have the arbitration conducted by telephone, video conference, based on written submissions, or in person in the country where you live or at another mutually agreed location.

Arbitrator Powers. The arbitrator, and not any federal, state, or local court or agency, shall have exclusive authority to resolve any dispute relating to the interpretation, applicability, enforceability or formation of this Arbitration Agreement including, but not limited to any claim that all or any part of this Arbitration Agreement is void or voidable. The arbitration will decide the rights and liabilities, if any, of you and California Southern University. The arbitration proceeding will not be consolidated with any other matters or joined with any other proceedings or parties. The arbitrator will have the authority to grant motions dispositive of all or part of any claim or dispute. The arbitrator will have the authority to award monetary damages and to grant any non-monetary remedy or relief available to an individual under applicable law, the arbitral forum’s rules, and this Agreement (including this Arbitration Agreement). The arbitrator will issue a written statement of decision describing the essential findings and conclusions on which any award (or decision not to render an award) is based, including the calculation of any damages awarded. The arbitrator shall follow the applicable law. The arbitrator has the same authority to award relief on an individual basis that a judge in a court of law would have. The arbitrator’s decision is final and binding on you and California Southern University.

Waiver of Jury Trial. YOU AND CALIFORNIA SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY WAIVE ANY CONSTITUTIONAL AND STATUTORY RIGHTS TO SUE IN COURT AND RECEIVE A JUDGE OR JURY TRIAL. You and California Southern University are instead electing to have claims and disputes resolved by arbitration, except as specified in Section 12(a) above. There is no judge or jury in arbitration, and court review of an arbitration award is limited.

Waiver of Class or Consolidated Actions. YOU AND CALIFORNIA SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY AGREE TO WAIVE ANY RIGHT TO RESOLVE CLAIMS WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THIS ARBITRATION AGREEMENT ON A CLASS, COLLECTIVE, OR REPRESENTATIVE BASIS. ALL CLAIMS AND DISPUTES WITHIN THE SCOPE OF THIS ARBITRATION AGREEMENT MUST BE ARBITRATED ON AN INDIVIDUAL BASIS AND NOT ON A CLASS BASIS. CLAIMS OF MORE THAN ONE CUSTOMER OR USER CANNOT BE ARBITRATED OR LITIGATED JOINTLY OR CONSOLIDATED WITH THOSE OF ANY OTHER CUSTOMER OR USER. If, however, this waiver of class or consolidated actions is deemed invalid or unenforceable with respect to a particular claim or dispute, neither you nor California Southern University is entitled to arbitration of such claim or dispute. Instead, all such claims and disputes will then be resolved in a court as set forth in Section 13.

Opt Out. You may opt out of this Arbitration Agreement. If you do so, neither you nor California Southern University can force the other to arbitrate as a result of this Agreement. To opt out, you must notify California Southern University in writing no later than 30 days after first becoming subject to this Arbitration Agreement. Your notice must include your name and address, your email address (if you have one), and a CLEAR statement that you want to opt out of this Arbitration Agreement. You must send your opt-out notice to: [info@calsouthern.edu]. If you opt out of this Arbitration Agreement, all other parts of this Agreement will continue to apply to you. Opting out of this Arbitration Agreement has no effect on any other arbitration agreements that you may have entered into with us or may enter into in the future with us.

Survival. This Arbitration Agreement will survive any termination of your relationship with us.

Modification. Notwithstanding any provision in the Agreement to the contrary, we agree that if we make any future material change to this Arbitration Agreement, it will not apply to any individual claim(s) that you had already provided notice of to us.

13.  Exclusive Venue

To the extent the parties are permitted under this Agreement to initiate litigation in a court, both you and California Southern University agree that all claims and disputes arising out of or relating to the Agreement will be litigated exclusively within the State of California for courts situated in Orange County, California, or in federal court for the Central District of California.

14.  Termination

At its sole discretion, we may modify or discontinue the Services, or may modify, suspend or terminate your access to the Services, for any reason, with or without notice to you and without liability to you or any third party. In addition to suspending or terminating your access to the Services, we reserve the right to take appropriate legal action, including without limitation pursuing civil, criminal or injunctive redress. Even after your right to use the Services is terminated, this Agreement will remain enforceable against you. All provisions which by their nature should survive to give effect to those provisions shall survive the termination of this Agreement.

15.  General

1. No Joint Venture or Partnership. No joint venture, partnership, employment, or agency relationship exists between you, California Southern University or any third party provider as a result of this Agreement or use of the Services.
2. Choice of Law. This Agreement is governed by the laws of the State of California consistent with the Federal Arbitration Act, without giving effect to any principles that provide for the application of the law of any other jurisdiction.
3. Severability. Except as otherwise provided herein, if any provision of this Agreement is found to be invalid, the invalidity of such provision shall not affect the validity of the remaining provisions of this Agreement, which shall remain in full force and effect.
4. Electronic Communications. For contractual purposes, you (1) consent to receive communications from us in an electronic form; and (2) agree that all terms and conditions, agreements, notices, disclosures, and other communications that we provide to you electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications would satisfy if they were in writing. This subparagraph does not affect your statutory rights.
5. Entire Agreement. This Agreement is the final, complete and exclusive agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof and supersedes and merges all prior discussions between the parties with respect to such subject matter.

16.  Contact Information

info@calsouthern.edu

Address

California Southern University, a member of the AIU System
2200 E. Germann Rd., Suite 120
Chandler, AZ 85286

Phone and Fax

USA toll-free: 1.800.477.2254
International: 1.714.480.0800
Fax: 1.714.480.0834